Destruction
of Orthodox Christian Heritage by Albanian Extremists in Macedonia*

*
We only technically use the name of Macedonia which
is in fact officially known as Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia.

After
the war in Kosovo 1998-1999 Kosovo Albanian extremists and their paramilitary
organization UCK (KLA) began systematic destruction of Orthodox Christian
monuments in Kosovo and Metohija with the goal of changing the cultural
and religious identity of the province. Soon after their military leaders
made plans to export violence to the neighboring republic of Macedonia.
Despite the strong NATO presence in Kosovo as well as their observers
and logistic bases in Macedonia Albanian terrorists with the assistance
of international criminal gangs and islamic fanatics close to Bin Laden
began a series of terrorist attacks with the goal to create instability
in Macedonia and initiate a division of the republic. After this creation
of Greater Kosovo or Greater Albania as exclusively Albanian ethnic areas
could be realised.

One of
the most important obstacles to this political and military goal is the
fact that in Kosovo and Metohija as well as in Macedonia there are numerous
Orthodox Christian shrines and monuments of worldwide renown which testify
that this area has never been historically Albanian and that it was only
during the Turkish occupation that Albanian Moslems as priviledged population
spreaded in this region. That is why Albanian extremists both in Kosovo
and Macedonia began devastation of Orthodox Christian culture in order
to create not only ethnically but culturally and religiously clean Albanian
Moslem territory as a base for further expansion in the Balkans.

Beside
destruction and desecration of the Orthodox Christian monuments in Kosovo
and Metohija (more than 100 after June 1999) since this summer more than
twentyimportant Orthodox Christian shrines have been desecrated or completely
destroyed in Macedonia. Among them are Leshok Monastery, Matejce Monastery
and church of St. George in Recica. How long it will take for Christian
leaders of Europe and America to understand that Albanian expansion in
the Balkans creates a base for the expansion of Islam in the heart of
Europe?

photo:
Monastery of Matejce - UCK symbol on the western church wall painted with
14th century frescoes and a UCK man with weapons in the church

TETOVO - In the past
six months over 20 churches and monasteries in the Tetovo area, situated
in the areas of military activities, are destroyed, burnt down or damaged.
Albanian terrorists have reached for the sacral objects, for those that
represent symbols of the Christianity and orthodoxy, for values that mark
the history and the tradition. A part of them were placed under the protection
of the state. The last of those objects was the religious temple "Sv.
Atanasie" in Leshok village. The artefacts of this cathedral date
back to 14th century A.D., and given the numerous features and meanings,
they represents the pride of the whole Polog Christianity, of the Orthodox
Church in Macedonia, as well as of the culture, art and literature in
Macedonia.

Monastery of Matejce built by Serbian Emperor Dusan the Mighty (14th)
century

THE
MONASTERY OF MATEJCE
One of the most important shrine of Orthodox Macedonians and Serbs

History
of the Monastery

The monastery
of Matejce is one of those monasteries in Macedonia that were built high
up in the mountains at 1005 meters above sea level, on the southeastern
side of the mountain Skopska Crna Gora, the Kumanovo side.
The monastery consists of a church dedicated to the Dormition of the Mother
of God and the residential part, which is now renovated and adapted for
tourists.
We learn about the history of the church from the Serbian king Milutins
written testimonials from 1300, which note that his son, Czar Dusan began
its construction on the foundation of an old church dedicated to St. Mary
Mother of God of Monte Negro. The fact that this czar started building
the church is also mentioned in the biography of Czar Uros, the last Serbian
ruler of Nemanjic dynasty. It states that after Czar Dusans death,
his wife Elena and his son Uros had the church finished and painted inside.
According to some written sources, until the Second World War there used
to be a chapel inside the altar of the church that came from the 12th
century. The church was restored in 1934, 1953 and 1960, after a long
period of negligence.
From an architectural point of view, the structure has five cupolas on
the basis of a cross.
The central cupola has twelve sides and the other four smaller cupolas
stand on the angles of the basis. The outside of the altar apse has five
sides and is decorated with bricklayers. Pilasters and blind arcade can
be seen on the facade.
The hagiographic icons from the 14th century, which fill the interior
of the church, are rather damaged. Some depictions of the life of Christ
and Mother of God have been saved. On the west wall there are remains
that show the vineyards of Byzantine emperors whereas the south wall presents
Czar Dusan, Czarina Elena and their son Uros.
What makes this church interesting are the numerous inscriptions. One
of them is the one that mentions the year 1568, when archbishop Nikifor
of Skopje died. There is also the inscription of Kiril Pejcinovic, the
great Macedonian religious and enlightenment missionary from the 19th
century.

Serbian
Orthodox Church officialy has jurisdiction over the Orthodox community
in Macedonia. Self proclaimed independent Macedonian Orthodox Church appeared
when the Macedonian dioceses split from its jurisdictional unity with
the Serbian Orthodox Church in 1964. The MPC since then remains officialy
unrecognized in the family of Orthodox Christian Churches. Serbian Orthodox
Church is therefore directly concerned about the destruction of its religious
and spiritual heritage on the territory of Macedonia. Great number of
medieval Orthodox churches in Macedonia, especially in Tetovo, Kumanovo
and Skopje area were built by Serbian medieval kings and nobility, the
fact which modern Macedonian historians systematically avoid.

Matejce Monastery
with Albanian extremists who made their camp here and a few months when
Orthodox faithful were allowed to pray under the desecrated frescoes with
UCK graffitti.

CHURCH ST.
SPAS IN MATEJCE IN FLAMES

(Nova Makedonija, 1.11.2001.) - Albanian terrorist gangs set fire in the
premises of church St. Spas in Matejce, which are fully burned
down. None of the Albanians in the village tried to extinguish the fire,
a fact that shows the fire was set by terrorist arsonists. Police sources
say that the Internal Ministry is already on the trace of the ones who
set the fire, against whom criminal charges will be brought. During the
visit of Opae village, Chairman of Coordination Body for Crisis Management
Ilija Filipovski was acquainted with the problems that displaced persons
face with in the course of their return to the homes. He was also acquainted
with the requests for an organized convoy for Macedonians and Serbs to
visit Matejce village.

After the visit of Opae village, representatives of the Coordination Body
had talks in Kumanovo community about the problems in high school education
in Albanian.

Fresco of St. Peter Apostle (14th) century with profanized
by Albanian
terrorists (Diego Armando Maradona is written)

LESHOK
MONASTERY

ALBANIAN
TERRORISTS' BOMBS BLAST THE LESHOK MONASTERY

(Mia,21.08.2001.)
- The Albanian terrorists destroyed completely the church St. Athanasius,
within the complex of Leshok monastery in the Tetovo village of Leshok.
Destroyed are the monastery building, the valuable icons and frescoes
and the wood-carved altar.
The monastery has been occupied for several months now, and it is believed
that it was selected because it is one of the pillars of the Macedonian
orthodox Christian religion and it is the location of the tomb of Kiril
Pejcinovik, a 19th century educator and enlightener.
The site was visited by the team of the Macedonian Institute for Protection
of Cultural Monuments and an OSCE team of observers.
The Minister of Culture of Republic of Macedonia in her statement sharply
condemned the act of violence against the culture of Macedonia and the
cultural treasure of the global civilization, comparing it only to the
destruction of the Buddha monuments in Afghanistan.

The
scenes of utmost barbarism and profanity
An Orthodox Christian monastery devastated by ethnic Albanian extremists

From the Inspection of the Destroyed Church of St. Atanasie and
St. Lazar from the Monastery of Leshok - ONLY THE CHURCH NARTHEX
REMAINED

(Vecer,24.08.2001.)
- What was left from the Church of St. Atanasie and St. Lazar
from the Monastery of Leshok, destroyed with the explosive planted by
the Albanian terrorists on August 21, at 03.10 in the morning, is the
entrance hall with the narthex and the two domes from the Northern and
Southern side. What is visible from the outside is the pentagonal apside,
but what else is left no one can say for sure because it is buried under
the ruins..., it is said in the report from the inspection made by the
Republic Institute for Protection of Monuments of Culture team (consisting
of Milan Ivanovski, archeologist and conservator and Vlado Kiprijanovski,
photographer and record keeper) who managed to arrive yesterday in the
ruined church and made an inspection of what was left from this monument
of culture, informed the director of the Institute, Jovan Kondijanov.

The explosive that
destroyed the church was placed at the supporting columns of the central
dome.

The dwelling premises
were slightly damaged (broken window glasses) as a result of the detonation
during the explosion, while the open porch with the dining room, the old
dwelling premises as well as the small church dedicated to the Holy Mary
are in a better situation. Cyril Pejcinovics tomb at the northwestern
corner of the grave board is damaged from the pieces falling from the
church during the explosion, 30 to 40 meters.

Also, the inspection
found wooden parts from the altar. They were collected and taken to the
Institute to be conserved and placed where they belong if the church is
reconstructed. However, during the inspections icons and other church
inventory were not found, so it is believed that they are still under
the ruins of the southeastern side of the church.

The part that was
left, the entrance hall with the narthex, has an enormous fissure where
the tetragons are separated from the facade, while inside parts from the
roof and the gallery situated above the aertex are hanging. As the members
of the team said, due to security reasons nothing has been inspected under
the ruins.

The director
Kondijanov informed that plans have been made for the church to be reconstructed
and used as an orthodox temple when the time permits.
M.P.

THE
LATEST ACT OF ALBANIAN BARBARISM IN MACEDONIA

The
church of St. George at Recica burned by Albanian terrorists
December 10, 2001

(Vest, 10.12.2001) - The fire in this sanctuary of Macedonians in Tetovo
area was set on Saturday evening, right before the holiday. The fire destroyed
everything, while the fire fighters managed to salvage only the monastery
shelter - Albanian terrorists burnt monastery St. Gjorgi in
village Mala Recica, near Tetovo on Saturday evening. According to police
sources, the fire was set in the late afternoon and it destroyed everything
in the object. After the fire had been reported, fire fighters arrived
without a police accompaniment around 18,00h and managed to salvage only
the monastery shelter. According to the claims from the fire fighters,
there were traces of prior demolition and robbing at the site. The fire
was set right before the day of celebration of holiday St. Gjorgji.

This monastery, which is popular among people from the Polog area, was
built 80 years ago, on the foundations of a monastery church that had
been built 9 centuries ago. The number of destroyed, burnt, robbed or
desecrated objects of the Macedonian Orthodox Church in Tetovo area has
been enlarged to more than 30 in the last 6 months.

On Saturday, the night
before a religious holliday, Albanian terrorists in Tetovo burned the
church St Gjorgjija.

Just night before
the same holliday St. Gjorgjija, the terrorist burned down the small but
monastery with big cultural value for Macedonia.

St Gjorgjija, in Golema
Rechica, Tetovo area, dated from 14.bc, was a monument of culture protected
by the law, but obviously, not from the terrorists law.

NATO, OSCE, and the
Macedonian Forces, while conducting an investigation, had to leave the
scene, due to sporadic shootings in the same area.

The church of St.
Gjorgjija dating back to 14th century in the village of Golema Rechica
was destroyed on Saturday in a fire set by unknown persons. The fire burned
its walls, frescos, icons, screen and the auxiliary facility sheltering
the kitchen. An Albanian from the village of Golema Rechica was the first
to report about the fire. When the fire-fighting squad and the OSCE mission
arrived at the spot, the church was already burnt to the ground. Golema
Rechica is not under Macedonian control. The Macedonian police were allowed
to move into the village as late as yesterday together with OSCE and NATO
representatives.

According to the Crisis
Management Center, another act of vandalism took place a little later
in the complex of the church of St. Gjorgjija. Unknown persons set ablaze
the inner part of the lodging area in close proximity to the church. As
the police were examining the site, shots were heard around the complex.
The church of St. Gjorgjija is mentioned in the church records of 13th
century. During the Ottoman Empire, it was torn down twice. In 1920 a
new church was built that was refurbished in 1965. It was then that ones
of the most beautiful lodgings were built. On May 6 and December 9, the
patron saint of the church is honored. In the past several months, the
church had no priest because of the military crisis.

The Ministry of Culture
condemned the act of vandalism over this monument whose fresco paintings
date back to 14th century. "This is a serious attack on efforts to
restore confidence and implement the Framework Agreement. It sets back
all efforts to find a civilized solution to the crisis in Macedonia.

The burning of the
monastery complex of St. Gjorgjija on the eve of the day of its patron
saint shows that militant groups still exist trying in any possible way
to subvert the peace process and inflict irreparable damages primarily
to their own people for whose 'greater human rights' they claim to fight,"
relates the statement issued by the Ministry of Culture. The coordination
body for crisis management says this is an act in breach of all international
standards and conventions, and all the more so, an act against humanity
and civilization in general. Churches in Macedonia are physical evidence
of the spiritual values that helped the Macedonian community survive and
persevere. The coordination body considers that precautions should be
reinforced to protect public law and order and forestall criminal activities,
thus securing freedom of movement and protection of physical and spiritual
values.

The block of Macedonian
parties and associations of Tetovo totally disagree with President Trajkovski
that the situation in Macedonia has improved considerably. They consider
such statements completely disproportionate prompting understandable revolt
particularly among the Macedonians in Tetovo and the surrounding area.

Experts
on Burning Down Church St. Gjorgija in Mala Recica- Marvellous
Monument of Medieval Art Destroyed

(Vecer, 11.12.2001) - The damage is even greater, having in mind that
there is no photo-documentation, according to which the church could be
reconstructed -

According to
me, church St. Gjorgija was intentionally burnt down by Albanian
terrorists in order for Christian population not to be able to celebrate
holiday St. Gjorgija. As a matter of a fact, the same thing
happened to Lesok monastery. Unfortunately, we do not know what has been
stolen before the burning down, and what has been destroyed by the fire.
The same thing happened with the displays from the collections in the
Teke and other religious and museum objects that are under the control
of the Albanian terrorists, Director of Museum of Tetovo Area Srecko
Jovanovski stated, after Saturdays act of vandalism.
Church St. Gjorgija is the 13th sacral object in Tetovo area,
which was a target of the Albanian terrorists, and was one of the rare
objects, which foundations dated from the 14th century. Namely, the remains
of the church were discovered in 1920, while the restoration occurred
10 years later. Monastery shelters were built in 1965. Two years later,
the Republic Bureau for Protection of Cultural Monuments sent a team to
perform archaeological researches in order to determine time belonging.
Team manager was art historian Petar Miljkovik Pepek, who said:
I performed a small sondage from the external north side and I did
not determine the depth of the foundation, because I came up at a bunch
of old frescos that could help in determining the age of the church, and
partly the decoration itself. According to the fragments of the decoration,
it can be said that it dates from the 14th century. The remains of the
frescos were given to the laboratory of the Bureau for research and conservation.
The archaeological research confirmed that it had been a small church.
There is no doubt that church St.Gjorgija is a significant
monument not only for Tetovo area, but for history of medieval art in
Macedonia.
Based on this data, the church was registered as a monument of culture
the very same year. Unfortunately, this temple was demolished and robbed
several times in the past 10 months by the Albanian terrorists, in order
for it to be entirely destroyed at the end. The damage is even greater,
having in mind that there is no photo-documentation, according to which
the church could be reconstructed.